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Maple Leafs forward Mitchell Marner day to day

Rookie questionable for game Saturday because of upper-body injury

Toronto Maple Leafs rookie forward Mitchell Marner is day to day after sustaining an upper-body injury on Wednesday, coach Mike Babcock said.

"We'll see tomorrow," Babcock said Friday. "Obviously, if I'm in charge, he's in and if the doctors are in charge, they'll decide tomorrow.

"We rely on him for scoring and he does a ton all over the ice. Obviously [having Marner sidelined] is not easy, but we've got guys who will step up and take on new roles. We feel confident in this group."

The Maple Leafs play back-to-back weekend games; they are home against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; CBC, TVA Sports, NHL.TV) and play at the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday (7 p.m. ET; SN360, SN1, FS-CR, NHL.TV).

Marner, 19, was injured when he crashed into the boards trying to check Columbus Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner in the second period of the Maple Leafs' 5-2 loss at Nationwide Arena.

The No. 4 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, Marner has 48 points (15 goals, 33 assists) in 56 games this season.

Toronto holds a one-point lead on the New York Islanders for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.